Aging Textures - Paint and Wood

Author: AlmightyQUEST

Tools Needed

• Photoshop
• Or another paint program with layers

3D rendering tries to achieve visual perfection. Because of this, most models appear brand new, shiny, and as if they've only left the box for the image. Sometimes, however, you want an object that's been used, broken, and generally not well kept. Aging textures is simple once you've done it once, and I will show you some basic methods of showing age and wear that can apply to many textures.

For purposes of this tutorial, I am using the free nutcracker model, found at http://freebackend.daz3D.com/free_weekly/detail.php?free_id=108 . I am also using Studio, and in the last stage I will be giving directions based on Studio, I do not know if anything changes for Poser, but I will assume that applying displacement maps in Poser will be similar enough that a Poser user can follow along.

To begin with, you should have two files for the texture you wish to age. They are usually under content > runtime > textures. You should have the full color texture, and then the black and white transparency map.

We will be using this transparency map both for transparency (with the hair), and also using the same map as a displacement map to work with the 3D texturing of the object. If you have a texture that does not come with a transparency map to work with, you can easily create a base for our displacement map by selecting all the colored area on the texture, and filling that selected area with 50% grey in a new document with a clear background (or in the same document if you can handle a lot of layers). For displacement maps, 50% grey is no change, white is the highest positive value, and black is the lowest negative value. Transparency maps have white as 100% opacity, and black as 0% opacity, so we will have to make the change from white to 50% grey to change our transparency map to our displacement map. Anything outside the UV map range doesn't matter, I suggest clear to keep track of where borders are. All texture maps are UV mapped the same way for an object.

The most important part with art that strives for any level of realism is reference material. I have some I'm using myself, but I can't redistribute it, but a simple Google search tends to turn up enough. Now, the first thing we're going to work on is taking away a little of that shine. As objects such as said nutcracker age, a lot can happen to them. If an object tends to be handled a lot, it is likely to get dark spots from the oils in people's hands, and will grow darker overall from dirt on people's hands. An object for display will tend to lighten from the effects of the sun on the paint, and become less saturated. I will be using the lightened method for this tutorial, but lightening and darkening the basic colors is similar. Go to Image > Adjust > Hue/Saturation. For darkening the color from dirt, leave the hue slider where it is, bring the saturation up slightly (5-10 range, any more will tend to be too intense), and bring the brightness slider down to where it looks good to you based on preference or reference. Because handling is specific, you will also need to do a little more hand work. The easiest way to improve on this is to take the burn tool, at a low pressure and intensity, and run it over areas most often touched, in this case most likely the arms, back, and sides of the legs. Oil stains tend to not be too noticeable, but a little bit can make a big difference. Just make sure they are slightly irregular, and that they follow the shape of the object. This may be one of the times where you will need to make a mock-up of the template to load up on the nutcracker object, just so you can place colored areas accurately. Again, reference material helps a lot.

Now, for fading the paint, it is much easier. In this example I had the saturation at -35, the brightness and 10, and then shifted the hue a bit to 15, which causes the colors to yellow slightly, which tends to happen to paints and wood as it ages (as well as paper, which people are most familiar with). Now, logically certain areas of the object are going to be lightened more than others, based on where the light source is coming from. However, because it is very regular as opposed to finger marks, lighting in the 3D application will create that effect for us. If you would like, you can follow the same principles as I mentioned to make smudges, only using the dodge tool. This, however, is much more noticeable if there are any mistakes, so I don't recommend trying unless you have a very good reason to do so.

Also, don't be afraid to experiment. Maybe add a bit of a red overlay in a blue area for a slight stain, maybe have grass stains (basically the same as stains, only with more stringy lines crossing than a spot) if the object could have them, whatever looks good works, and just keep checking references in photos if you aren't sure how something should look.

Now, despite the fact that I liked the faded colors more than the stained colors, I have decided that in the past this nutcracker saw too much time in the hands of a small child. Or a dog. Or something. So, what damage would be done to a primarily wooden object like this? Well, one of the main things is scratches. Scratches can vary a lot, from grazing scratches that barely affect the surface layer, to deep cuts that we will use the displacement map to simulate.

First, we will look at the surface grazing. Create a new layer above your new color layer, and fill it with white. Now go to Filter > Noise > Add Noise. Set the noise to monochrome, and I would set the amount to 100%, higher for more scratches, lower for less.

(See top image for a sample noise layer)

Now, you have a full screen of dots. We want scratches. Now, there are two ways of doing this.

One way is to go Filter > Blur > Motion Blur, pick a general direction that the scratches would move in, and set it to blur about 10-20 pixels, enough so it doesn't look like little dots, but also so it doesn't blend together too much. You may choose to go Edit > Adjust > Brightness/Contrast, and play around with the contrast to get an amount and intensity of lines you like.

Now, for both of these methods, you have, basically, three options at this point. One is to change the layer setting to overlay, or something similar like soft light, which uses both the white and the black to change the layer underneath. Another option is to set the layer to lighten, color dodge, or something similar, which uses the white to lighten the layer underneath. The third option, as you can probably guess, is darken or color burn, which darkens the layer underneath. Again, adjusting contrast or transparency of the layer changes its intensity, and you probably want this at a low opacity. You can also duplicate and combine layers, if you want scratches in multiple directions, or you prefer a darken and lighten layer instead of an overlay. Experimentation is always key.

You can either leave this as is now, with scratches over the entire texture, or you can now apply a layer mask, and erase sections of this layer, leaving it to only affect key areas that would scratch easily, like the arms and face.

(The image here shows general scratches using the motion blur. Note that the scratches were removed from the face, which I will pay more attention to later, but also from the hair, feather, jewel, and fringe, which wouldn't scratch. Unfortunately, this template is not very clear, but other templates tend to be labeled more clearly, and have groups based on the object, not the color, so you can more easily tell what is an arm, leg, or hair, or anything else).

Now, for the face region I will show you another method of light scratches. The only difference here between the previous method is that instead of using a motion blur, you use the blur and/or smudge tool on the noise. It may not seem useful here, but for objects with irregular shapes it is very good to know how to do this. Just make sure your smudge tool has its pressure turned down so you can still see individual marks.

Now, those last scratches weren't anything major, not enough for us to need to use displacement maps on the texture. However, sometimes there are major scratches in old objects. You know, the sort of thing where someone decides to stab their nutcracker. Well, that is a little more major, and that will be most effective using a displacement map.

Now, I will once again making mock-up textures to test. What I mean by this is that since Studio currently will not reload textures unless you quit Studio and start it up, I would advise you to save 'test 1.JPG', 'test 2.JPG', etc, for both textures and displacement maps, so you can see how it looks in Studio. Because I am not using this texture for a project, I am not checking it as I go along, and am not entirely sure how the outcome will look before I'm ready. I do not recommend this is you want to actually use the texture.

With that out of the way, we are moving right along on to displacement. Displacement maps, unlike bump maps, actually distort the mesh of the object as opposed to simply faking three-dimensional texture.

There are two ways we can use this to our advantage. One way is simply drawing on the displacement maps in shades darker than 50% grey where we want our scratches. Anything darker than 50% grey pulls the mesh inwards, while anything over 50% pushes it outwards. Lights will shade this area accordingly, and correctly unlike will happen sometimes with bump maps, which simply shade the surface.

However, we may not want to leave it at that. There are several reasons to make further changes to the color texture. The shading of the actual color can reinforce what the lights shade, which can be very helpful. Also, as is the case here, if there is any change under the top surface of the figure, you can show those. In this case, we have wood under paint. The most important thing when working with displacement maps and texture maps is to make sure that things line up correctly. If you draw in black on a separate layer on the displacement map, I suggest you copy the layer, add a plain white back to it, merge the layers, and copy this over to your color texture. Switch the colors for drawing with white. This will show you exactly where the spot lines up on the two images. You can do this working from the texture to the displacement map as well. If you have a gradient area that you wish to transfer between images, instead of sharp edges, then add the black or white layer as you normally would, copy it over, but instead of using the magic wand, click the tab next to your layers tab, 'Channels', and crtl+click any channel. This should select all the white, including the 'white' in gradients. You can then delete the white, or invert the selection and delete the black. Make sure you have any layers over the layers you are working on turned off, or this won't work correctly.

I have added a bit of a battle scar to our nutcracker, right across the chest. First, fill the area in with black on the displacement map, making sure it has soft edges so it isn't just a sudden drop straight down into the mesh. Use this area as a guide for the texture map. First, I would suggest making a new layer, copying a bit of the face onto that layer, and lining it up over the indented area. Erase gently but with sharp edges until the wood area is inside the indented area. Leave rough edges, for where the paint would have been pressed down. Conversely, you can make a hole in the color layer, with a copy of wood texture beneath the color layer. Try both and see which works better for you. I actually used the second method in this image. I also suggest making copies of any layer you are directly changing, and also using layer masks if you want to delete parts of major layer like the color layer. You also want to delete any of the smaller scratches going over your deep scratches, especially in areas where you have a color change.

This will be a case where users with a tablet will have an advantage, as it is easier to create tapered lines. That doesn't mean you can't do it by hand, it's just a little more work.

Now, this is the part where I will go into several different things you can do to create a worn look. Odds are that you won't use everything in a single texture, though if there is enough space, you might. If you are trying to follow me exactly as I am, I can guarantee you the texture will look a little forced, simply because space is an issue here.

Now, for lack of any direction, I will quickly cover the hair and fringe.

This part is mostly reliant on a color change. You can go to the transparency map, and add darker lines into the hair to make it look thinner, like some has fallen out, but that is simple enough I think you can manage without an image to demonstrate. Simply make sure to apply the transparency map to the hair.

Now, thread, hair, and many other materials yellow as they age, as I said before. For the white hair here, it is simple enough to add a layer of yellow over it, and turn the opacity much lower. Alternatively, if you have colored thread or the likes, you can do the same thing setting the layer to overlay, or go to edit > adjust > hue/saturation, and move the hue slider until the colors yellow. The golden fringe I am adding a layer of dark green over, setting it to overlay, and lowering the opacity. This dims the color and helps achieve the dirty, aged affect. I did the same with the feather, only a dark blue layer instead of green, even going a little into the purple colors.

Again, with this sort of thing you can thin down the transparency map (drawing black over a white area: black=0%, white=100%), but other than that there isn't much to do with this little area. I plan another tutorial going more in depth into what happens with large areas of material.

Remember, anything outside of the map range doesn't affect the map, so if my area fills looks sloppy, that's why, because they don't need to stay inside the lines.

Alright, next I'm going to do yet another one that is mainly a color change. Actually, this is only a color change again, but it's more involved than the last one.

Paint can be rubbed off fairly easily if care is not taken, and it can rub off without even scratching the surface. In this case, the paint isn't really deep enough to warrant a displacement map change, though I will show how to do that in my next section on paint peeling, and explain it briefly at the end of this section.

First thing you want to do is make a copy of the wood texture. Basically, make a copy of the face on a new layer, and move that layer beneath your color layer. Line it up over the area you want the paint rubbed off, and use the rubber stamp tool if you need to cover more area. Now, go to the color layer, add a layer mask if you don't have one already, and then, using a soft brush, paint away the rubbed area. Make sure the edges stay soft, and it moves in the general direction of the rubbing. Since it is only rubbed, the smooth effect is needed. Peeling paint, the next section, will use harder edges.

It's as simple as that. Typically darkening the wood layer slightly will look better, but only slightly. If you want, try adjusting the wood layer to have a slight tint of the paint that used to be covering it. I have only done this to a small area on the arm, as peeling paint is more difficult and I want more room to demonstrate this.

I know the image isn't great, but I didn't want to spend too much time on this, as it's pretty easy to figure out the mechanics, just a little more work on the creation

Now, we finally move on to peeling paint. This is a good time for source material.

Now, the first thing to work out is what the final image should look like. You need to decide the shape, which you want to start blocking in over the texture on another layer. Peeling typically has a larger center area, with little thread like areas where it is beginning to peel, typically in web like patterns. Sometimes, little 'islands' of paint will stay stuck on, but disconnected from the main painted area. The shape is probably the most important part of this, and the one where reference material is most handy. As said before, because this is not a texture I intend to use, I will not work as detailed as I normally would. It also helps to work very large here, and to taper ends.

For some excellent reference material, first return from a Google search:

http://www.mayang.com/textures/Architectural/html/Paint%20Effects/

(Shape at top of the page)

Now that you have the shape, continue with how it will look. Are there other paint layers under this one? If so, their shape may have to differ slightly. You want to begin blocking out areas of the paint, again using a layer of the wood texture under a color layer with a mask. Once you block out that area, you can add layers of a different color with a mask under this once. This takes a lot more work, and source material is once again highly recommended. You may notice in my image that the final hole in the paint was a slightly different shape than the original block. Just make sure you make these changes to the template you use on your displacement map.

Lastly, we tackle the displacement map. The paint will have curled up at the edges of the peeled area. This is a good time to bring that blocked out shape from your texture to your displacement map file. Now, remember that everything is scaled here. You can adjust how far the farthest indent can be and how far the farthest extruding area can be separately in Studio. This means that black does not have to go as far in as white goes out, once you work with it in Studio. You can have the black go much farther in. The only thing that has to be consistent is the scaling on the positive and negative sides separately. We will be using white for our highest point on the paint, even though this will only go out very slightly compared to the indents we have already made.

Now, the easiest way to do this is this: Select the shape of the peeled paint, invert the selection, then carefully, with a soft brush, paint on white around the edges of the selection. You may want to do this on a new layer. The white can be very slight, where only the very edge peels upwards, or a bit larger for areas where there may be air bubbles under the paint's surface. Again, experimentation and a lot of mock texture files are keys to this process. You can see some air bubbles I added in the lower left hand corner.

Now, I think we can safely move on to extras. Little things you can throw in that make a difference. Let's try this first. Pick one of the buttons there. Select that button, just a small circular selection with the lasso tool, and then make it a new layer-via-copy. Now, use the eyedropper tool to select the same shade of blue as the rest of the shirt (with the scratches turned off so they don't get in the way), and paint over the button on the color layer. Now, use the magic wand tool to select the blue edges around the button, and delete those. Rotate the button a little, move it a little, then put a spot of light yellow behind it, so you can see a little bit of the yellow. There you have it, a button that fell off and was hastily glued back on. You may want to grunge up the buttons a little too with some scratches drawn directly on the buttons, they look too shiny and new for our purposes.

Let's say you want an area of the wood to have gotten rubbed down a little. Pick a color from the wood grain with the eyedropper, apply that SINGLE color to the area that was rubbed down, and then, if needed, darken that area slightly.

Now, let's say a not-very-skilled person tried repainting a section. Pick a spot, such as on a leg or the back, and color in an area of a different shade of the main paint color. Look for images of dripping paint to see the sort of shape you want.

Now, take that shape, and move it into your displacement map. If you are able, take a look at some paint that had dripped before it dried. Typically, rather than being a 'half-raindrop' shape on the surface, the 'thickest part' will have indented slightly. Keeping in mind how high you want white to go on your displacement map, draw in the paint drips accordingly. You may want to see my image as an example, as it is difficult to put in words.

I added drips to the lower part of the torso, which doesn't make sense based on the chipped paint and scratch already on the torso, but it was the best space to work with where I knew which way gravity would act. Typically, you will start your shape at the TOP of the region, so no change needs to be made to the upper part of the region on the displacement map. Here, I didn't make the changes to the upper region on the displacement map, since really this is only to demonstrate the paint drips.

You also can make a specularity map of the painted area, with everything except the new paint being black and the new paint being white, so everything else is dull except the new coat of paint.

Now, finally, we are putting it all together. Save your maps in some format that Studio can read, I tend to use JPG files, but Studio can read .tif files which many people prefer for quality. It's up to you.

Now, if you know how to make mat files, that's great. I don't yet, and therefore I'm going through this by hand. You can select all of the materials for the nutcracker under the material list, and change all the diffuse colors to white (if they aren't already, they should be automatically), and load up your final texture. This is typically the part where you notice some little mistake you need to go back and fix. Now, if you adjusted the TRANSPARENCY map at all for the hair, select the white node and apply that transparency map. Now, select everything EXCEPT the hair, and go down to 'displacement' (not bump), and apply the displacement map you made. This part takes some experimenting, you may simply be able to leave the maximum and minimum where they are, but most likely you will need to turn the maximum (the raised paint) down, and the minimum (the indentations) up.

Note that the displacement will ONLY show up when you render the image.

Now, the surface is going to be too glossy in this case, my suggestion is to select everything except the hair, turn it's glossiness down, and set the lighting model to glossy 'plastic' or possibly glossy metal. You may want to even set it to matte for things like the wooden areas, and you only want a very little bit of glossiness to the painted areas.

Now, these basic ideas can apply to just about anything. They relate most directly to painted and wooden surfaces, but the general ideas of displacement and color change remain similar.

As stated before, I intend to create another tutorial going more in-depth on the effects of wear and tear on cloth and similar materials.

You saw the final image at the top of the page, now, the detail shots:

This turned out decently, considering I hadn't been checking on how it looked as it went. I do see some obvious changes I would make if I were intending to use this, I would lower the opacity of the main scratches, and would add more black lines to the trans-map of the hair and feather, and would have included the specularity map. I also probably would have made the scratch on the face shallower. As you see in the last image, while the paint chips look good at a distance, up close I would want to have had a higher resolution texture with more detail. I also would have worked on the buttons. You can see the paint drips very well, better than I expected. Overall it's a pretty convincing texture, it would need a little more work, but since I'm not using the texture I'm leaving it at this. It's not that it needs different work, it's simply using the techniques I've already explained and applying it to different areas of the texture. It could probably use some more of the shallow/deep scratches on the body. Just take time and you will be happy with your final texture.